(CNN) -- Dick's Sporting Goods, one of the largest sporting goods retailers in the world, says it has removed all guns from its store nearest to Newtown, Connecticut, and is suspending the sale of certain kinds of semi-automatic rifles from its chains nationwide.

The move was made out of respect for the victims and families of last week's Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting "during this time of national mourning," the store said in a statement Tuesday morning.

"We continue to extend our deepest sympathies to those affected by this terrible tragedy," the statement said.

It was unclear how long the store will keep the suspension in place for the guns, known as 'modern sporting rifles.'